By Fredrick Misleh

On May 24, Charles Reed announced his “retirement” after a 14-year tenure as chancellor of the California State University system.

Until the Board of Trustees find his replacement, Reed will continue overseeing more than 44,000 faculty and staff and 427,000 students on 23 campuses. However, Reed’s tenure has been controversial.

In November 2011, a Board of Trustees meeting was held at CSU Long Beach to discuss raising student tuition by $498 per student per semester, as well as raising student and faculty parking fees. During the meeting, Reed ordered protesting students to leave the room, citing safety concerns.

Reed and the Board of Trustees later voted to approve pay raises for several CSU presidents, setting off a series of protests across the CSU system and earned Reed the unflattering nickname of “Chancellor Greed.”

With this in mind, and the fact that Reed will be 71 on Sept. 29, it is a relief to hear that Reed is retiring. A great many students (and faculty who also suffered pay cuts right along with the student tuition hikes) across the CSU system feel the same.

One can only hope his replacement is not only younger and more in touch with reality, but also has a real and balanced plan to fix the financial crisis gripping the CSU system. A nice start would be cutting presidential, trustee, and chancellor pay rates by 50 percent or more, and using the money saved to invest in faculty salaries and other educational programs.